Google is testing a change in AI Overviews where normal-looking links can pull searchers deeper into an AI experience rather than sending them to a publisher’s page. The change, spotted in late September 2026, keeps users inside Google’s conversational interface for a follow-up query instead of handing them off to the web result behind the link.
The anchor links sit at the bottom of an AI Overview answer and look like standard citations. When clicked, they launch a follow-up question inside AI Mode rather than opening the underlying website. The behavior means a searcher who expected to read a source page gets another generated answer instead.
What the AI Overview links actually do
The links appear in the typical position where AI Overviews show source attributions and related queries. A mouse cursor hovering over them reveals the difference: these are not links to third-party domains. They are prompts that carry the conversation forward within Google’s AI Mode.
A screen recording of the behavior shows two anchor links near the bottom of an AI Overview. Clicking either one triggers a fresh AI Mode response built around the question represented by the link text. The destination is not a web page, a publisher’s article, or a traditional search results page.
Why the change matters for search traffic
AI Overviews already generate a complete answer above the organic listings. Citation links within those answers have been one of the remaining paths for a searcher to leave the AI surface and visit the site that supplied the information. When those links instead open another AI conversation, the pathway from answer to publisher shortens further.
The test fits a pattern Google has been building toward: keeping more of the search journey inside its own AI surfaces. A searcher who lands on an AI Overview, clicks a follow-up link, and receives another generated answer has taken two steps without visiting a single web page.
What searchers and site owners should watch
The behavior appears to be an early test rather than a global rollout. The linking pattern shows up in select AI Overview answers, with the anchor links styled identically to ordinary source links. For site owners, the practical effect is that some clicks that previously reached a domain may now flow into more AI Mode sessions instead.
For searchers, the change makes the answer trail feel more conversational. A follow-up question is answered in place, with no tab switch and no wait for a separate page to load. The trade-off is a layer of generated answers between the reader and the underlying source material.
Monitoring where AI Overview links actually point has become part of tracking how visible a site remains in AI-driven search. SEOScanPro’s AI visibility tracking shows whether an AI agent can read and use a site, which matters more as Google routes additional follow-up activity through AI Mode.
What this means for the search results page
The test continues the migration of search features into AI surfaces. AI Overviews already occupy the top of many results pages. AI Mode sits alongside traditional search as a separate, fully conversational experience. Links that bridge the two, carrying the user from an overview into a deeper AI session, blur the line between a hybrid results page and a pure chat product.
If the test expands, publishers may see fewer referred visits from AI Overview citations while searchers see more generated follow-up answers in a single session. Google has not yet confirmed the test or stated how widely these links appear.
FAQ
Are Google AI Overview links now going to AI Mode instead of websites?
Google is testing anchor links inside AI Overviews that open follow-up questions in AI Mode instead of taking users to the underlying web page. The links look like normal source links but keep the user inside Google’s AI experience.
Where do these AI Mode links appear in AI Overviews?
The links appear at the bottom of an AI Overview answer, in the area where source citations and related questions are typically shown. Clicking them launches a follow-up AI Mode query rather than opening a third-party domain.
Will this change affect traffic from Google to publisher websites?
If the test expands, some clicks that previously reached publisher sites through AI Overview citations could instead open more AI Mode answers. The behavior removes a step where a searcher would otherwise leave Google’s AI surface to visit a web page.
Try the AI visibility report
The AI visibility report runs a full technical audit of a site and shows the measured result behind every check. Open the AI visibility report.
This article summarizes reporting from seroundtable.com.